Cal quarterback Jared Goff opts for National Football League draft
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch will be declaring his eligibility for the NFL Draft on Thursday, giving teams one more option at quarterback early in the draft. This season, thanks to a six-touchdown game in the Armed Forces Bowl on Tuesday, Goff surpassed the Pac-12 record for most touchdown passes in a season with 43. They shared a close relationship, and it is unclear whether one’s decision to leave Memphis influenced the other.
If so, he is entering the draft on quite a high.
He was 296 of 443 for 3,778 yards with 28 touchdowns and only four interceptions this season completing 69.1 percent of his passes with Memphis (9-4). In head coach Sonny Dykes’ first season, 2013, he named the true freshman Goff his starting quarterback, making him the first true freshman in school history to start a season opener at quarterback.
Goff is the career leader at Cal in just about every significant statistic for quarterbacks.
Lynch finishes his Tiger career with 8,865 passing yards and 59 passing touchdowns. He completed just 16 of 37 passes for 108 yards with no touchdowns and an interception in a 31-10 loss to Auburn in Wednesday’s Birmingham Bowl.
At 6-feet-7 and 245 pounds, Lynch has impressed National Football League scouts this season with his unique combination of size, mobility and touch, despite inconsistent performances in the Tigers’ final three games.